Omaha daily bee., 1887-12-05
PEARL FISHING IN THE EAST.
A Perilous Industry on tho Austral-
ian Coast.
VALUES AND SIZES OF PEARLS.
A Natural Curiosity v Methods Of Ma
tives and Europeans-Art.
ficial Formation OF
Pearls.

| Strulla Is tne pearl smell anu pcuri hsil-
cry. The number of vessels fishing off
the northwest coast OF Australia has
been increasing rapidly during the last
few years, and there are prolific banks
there in abundance, on which are found
the shell oyster, the shell of which is
| principally valuable for the mother-of-
pearl OF which it is composed, and the
small oyster, which is the true pearl
| bearer.
| The larger kind is from six to ten
inches in diameter, and the pair OF
shells weigh from two to four pounds,
| or sometimes more. These oysters not
infrequently contain pearls, but it is for
their shells that they are sought. The
true pearl-bearing oyster is scarcely
larger than an eastern oyster, and the
she'll is of very little value. Single
| pearls have been found on this coast
valued at 81 500 and So 800, but the most
curious pearl discovery that has been
made. either here or elsewhere. was
made on this coast few years ago.
when the now famous ''crude australis,"
or southern cross pearl was revealed.
This is a perfect natural cross
| of nine pearls. all in one
| piece. The finder of this unprecedented
! gem was. as often happens. unaware of
its value. and sold it for 800. The pur-
| chaser considered himself fortunate
when he was offered $1,000 by four gen
tlemen in Perth. They sent the curl
osity to England and had it mounted
and exhibited in the recent colonial and
Indian exhibition in London, where it
attracted great deal OF notice, and
was offered for sale authe advanced price
| of $50, 600.
| Whether a purchaser has yet been
| found for it is not known. The exhibit
tors hoped that his holiness, the pope,
| might consider it his duty to become
| the possessor Of so marvellous natural
reproduction of the holy tree; and per-
haps some pious dcvotee may before
now have purchased it for a jubilee Of
| fering to the pontitf.
| Curiously enough the largest single
pear on record has recently changed
| hands on the death of its proprietor.
Beresford Hope. an English member of
| the parliament. This gem. which, till
the discovery OF the Southern Cross,
| was the most valuable pearl known,
weighs no less than three ounces, is two
| inches and an inch and half in dame
| ter.
| Pearls are not valuable in modern
days as they used to be in modern times.
| There is pretty story told in the Tai
mud which illustrates the fact in the
very earliest days they were considered
the most precious of all gems. This is
not, however. TO be wondered at, when
| it is remembered that all the gems
which in modern times have eclipsed
| the pearl, owe n great part OF their
| a., no el. III with ,vb i.h fhpI n rn
cut and polished, while the beauty of IL
pearl is purely natural.
| Pearl fishing has been going on dur
| ing the last few years all around the
| north coast, off Port Darwin, in Torres
| straits and off the coasts of northern
| Queensland generally. but just lately
| the fisheries off the western coast have
been coming into higher favor, and
boats have been arriving there from the
other parts of Australia and from Singa-
pore. Mr.. Strecter, the famous jeweler
of Bond street and COrnhill in London,
| has himself had boat there for the
past year or two, and only toward the
end of last year or the beginning OF this
lost one of his sons, who was engaged
in the pursuit of pearls.
These new comcrs have introduced
| the use of the diving-dress, in which
white men descend to collect the shells.
but large part of the fishing is still
carried on by Australian natives. who
are very good at diving and can stay
under water for a long time. Most of
the boats which boast of a diving dress
are strong lugger-rigged craft of seven
or eight tons burden, built for the most
part in Sidney. They are generally
manned by seven men, one OF whom
combines the functions ofrsliipper and
| diver. He goes down to the bottom. and
one of the crew keeps hold OF the signal
rope.
For deep sea fishing, of course, the
diving-dress is of very great advan-
tage, but the price of the outfit is con-
siderable, and on the shallower banks
at any rate the natives do very well.
| These, of course, wear no sort of
clothes. but dive to the bottom. carry
| ing with them sack or basket in which
to collect the shells. They can stay
down for full minute, and sometimes
longer, and they occupy their time in
| busily loading the receptacle they have
brought down with shells.
In this they make ~ good deal of use
| OF their toes, with which they can pick
things up with marvellous deXterity.
Their great toes can be moved out from
| their feet as easily as white mans
| thumb from his hand, and this is the
| way III WHltu tIicy p'Nh VIZ
any small object oil tho ground, thus
saving themselves the trouble of stoop-
ing.
| The life is very trying one, owing
to the great pressure Of the water at the
depths to which they have to descend.
| Sharks also introduce a formidable ele-
ment of risk, and a pearl-diver's life is
rarely, if ever, long one. The poor
| fellows get so little for it, too, that one
cannot but pity them. On the
coasts of India the diver gots one
fourth part of the produce of his
labor, but not SO the poor West
| Australian, though for the matter of
| that he would be no scrap the better of
| if he did, but rather the worse, for, hay
| ing no idea beyond the beasts of the
| field what to do with money, he would
assuredly spend it all either in drink or
clothes, both OF which would be most in
| furious to him.
The export of the pearl shells from
| Western Australia during the year OF
1885 was valued at over s2l7 900, and the
pearls for the same year were worth
about $75 900. Probably the take last
| year was considerably larger, but this
year it will be very small indeed, for
| I,A Of hn fghi i'm